Horror movies &stuff Interview: "Slime City Massacre" Star, and Scream Queen, Debbie Rochon!
Our "Slime City Massacre" Interview series chugs on! This time, we talked with another one of the films stars, Debbie Rochon! In the film she plays Alice, a renegade who has taken up refuge in the chaotic Slime City. She is joined by her partner Mason, who soon, like Alice, becomes addicted to the infamous Elixir, which was made famous in the first film. In this interview, we talk "Slime City Massacre", and much, much more!
MR. H:You're a very busy lady. In fact, I think most people would dare to call you the Barack Obama of the horror genre. Whereas the current U.S. president has a lot of country issues such as the economy and jobs on his plate, you have a ton of horror films and genre projects on yours.
Debbie:Yes, I have never been compared to a president but if I have to be that is certainly one I take as a high compliment! There are always a million things to do and some things can take a few more days or a couple more weeks to get to than you would like but having no assistants and doing my best is all I can do. I act, write, am a radio co-host and co-producer and many other things so it's a lot but you have to be a jack of many trades these days. Plus it helps when you have many loves/passions like I do.
MR. H:So in this film, "Slime City Massacre", you play the character of Alice. Tell us about Alice.
Debbie:Alice is the partner of Mason. they are two renegades who have found a safe haven in the sub-culture in Manhattan's post-apocalyptic world. They have a safe house they live in but when another couple comes upon their domain they decide to let them in, befriend them and see what they can get out of their friendship. They are, after all, absolute survivalists. Then they all become addicted to the Elixar and all bets are off. Anything goes for the addiction.
MR. H:How long was the overall shoot for your character?
Debbie:My character was shooting for about 1/3 of the movie I think. There are flashbacks in the film that feature some of the original cast, there are a lot of scenes with the other two leads, they are more sympathetic than our characters I think because they are still some what hopeful about life and human nature. There are other levels of people living in the wasteland of what used to be NYC so there's a lot of ground Greg covers in this. I was in Buffalo shooting for about 2 weeks. It was sheer joy.
MR. H:Have you ever shot a film in Buffalo New York before? What was the experience like?
Debbie:I was in Buffalo for 2 weeks two years ago helping Lloyd Kaufman with pre-production on POULTRYGEIST: NIGHT OF THE CHICKEN DEAD. Also it's where Chris Seaver of LBP shot FILTHY MCNASTY with me, right in the University of Buffalo in 2002! So I have been there 3-4 times total now shooting various projects! I really like Buffalo a lot. I am amazed at how many great film people are based there. It seems like there either should be, or will be a lot more going on there soon! The weather was unseasonably cool too so it was really nice. Great shoot with SLIME CITY MASSACRE, the material, the people, the weather and even the actor house were all excellent! i couldn't have hoped for a better experience.
MR. H:You got to work with Lee Perkins again in this film. What's it like working with Lee in general?
Debbie:I have been in one other movie with Lee but we never shot on the same days so I had never met him before SCM. It was really terrific working with him. I sincerely dug the work he put into his role. He was terrific to bounce ideas off of. All he was concerned with was the dynamics of the scnes and the characters. I really appreciated that a lot and helped me even more get into my stuff. I appreciate everything he did to work out the scenes with me, that was a lot of fun, and that's the real work that is so often missing in shoots.
MR. H:How does working with "Slime City Massacre" director Greg Lamberson differ and compare to other directors you've worked with in the past?
Debbie:Greg was completely calm, accommodating, open to ideas yet very clear on the complexities of what he was trying to create. Yes even in something called SLIME CITY MASSACRE there ARE complexities! Lots of levels. For the characters, for the story. he handled everything so well. I had never met him before but was a huge fan of the original movie. I was so happy when he asked me to be in this movie. Then when we shot the film I was even more impressed and happy to be there. he is a great human being as well as filmmaker and I couldn't be prouder to say I am in this movie.
MR. H:Do you think "Slime City Massacre" will end up being as big of a cult-hit as "Slime City" was?
Debbie:I really hope so! I can say yes from what I have seen, my intuition, from what everyone has put into the film. If it was based on those points it would be an automatic YES! But seeing it's always up to the viewers in the end I can only hope. I think it had all the right ingredients to be something very cool and special and cult-like for sure. Effects were way cool. Acting was terrific. Script was very well done. Directing right on the money. The DP and his crew were exceptional. You don't have to take my word for it, you will see when it comes out. But a cult hit? I pray so. It deserves it!
MR. H:What are some of your fondest on-set memories in reference to "Slime City Massacre"?
Debbie:That's tough because there are so many. Minus the discomfort, the slime bath tub scene was pretty awesome and amazing! Playing head games in the scenes with the other characters was lots of fun. Spending time getting to know the actors at the actor house was priceless. Getting to know Greg as much as time would allow, and his family, was very endearing to me. It's been a long time since I have had such a good time creatively, personally and emotionally on a shoot! Good times, good work, good people. This is more rare than you think so I cherish my memories of this shoot very much.
MR. H:What were some of the more difficult scenes to shoot, and what were some of the easiest scenes to shoot?
Debbie:The most difficult were the nude scenes covered in slime. But I have to say they made it as bearable as they possibly could! Plus the actors Kealan and Jennifer had it far worse than I did they shot for two days in the freezing cold covered in slime and mine was not nearly as grueling as theirs. But that was the only time anything seemed hard at all. Even at that I can't complain. The easiest was working in scenes with the 3 other Slime Heads. They were all so into it the scenes became so fun for me. they play level was really high. I just hope the camera was able to capture it all!
MR. H:With so many indie horror movies coming out every year, do you think indie horror is moreso the future of the genre rather than big studio horror releases?
Debbie:Well, if we can continue to find an outlet I think there will be a good solid strong hold for indie horror. But with things changing so rapidly in the medium of watching movies it's sort of a guessing game right now. DVD is on it's way out. Might not actually go for another 5 years but it will. I think On-Demand and computer hook up to the TV screen watching movies like that is one way things will go. Being able to watch ANY movie ANY time you want. ANY moment you want. No buying it through the mail or in person, no waiting for it to come on TV, no waiting in any way. I think the big studios know this and would love to tie up this medium first but it's hard to say. I think the future of indie horror will depend a lot on the demand for it and it's ability to be as easily accessable as non-indie flicks. And awareness. Gotta know something exists before you can know to watch it!
MR. H:You've got some very interesting genre movies waiting in the wings for a release. Such as "Horrorween", "Beg", "Won Ton Baby", and "Devil's Fork". When do you expect that the public will see these films, and other films of which you've recently appeared in?
Debbie:HORRORWEEN and DEVIL'S FORK haven't been shot so those are way in the works still! BEG is being completed still. WON TON BABY! is going to be really something special and unusual! Fantastic little evil baby who's father is an Elvis Impersonator. It's really a terrifically unique script and from what I have seen so far it will kick some serious ass! A couple of films have landed distribution that I am excited for people to see including COLOUR FROM THE DARK which will be coming out in North America by the end of this year. It's based on an H.P. Lovecraft flick. We shot it in Italy. Amazing film.
Also HANGER just got distribution and will be out before the end of the year too! That film is really out there and a must see! A few other gems are waiting for distribution, THE GOOD SISTERS is complete and being shopped around. It's a classic witchy tale! A few others that are still in post-production so I'll wait to talk about them till they are closer to being ready to go! I just shot a cool flick IMAGO in Houston, Texas with Nightmare 4 & 5 star Lisa Wilcox. Just shot another LBP flick TEENAPE vs. THE MONSTER NAZI APOCALYPSE.
MR. H:You've got a project in development called "Lady Misery". Care to elaborate on that one?
Debbie:Yes! It's a project I wrote with Jon Keeyes, director of AMERICAN NIGHTMARE. We are currently getting the funding together for this project. It's inspired by but not an exact replica of the Jane Toppan character. I am extremely excited about making this happen. I am involved from the ground up on this one so it's a long but very satisfy ing process! A horror-thriller with a very evil woman killer who loves blood and suffering...of others!
End.
Be sure to visit DebbieRochon.com for all the latest updates and news on her many upcoming genre projects!
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